Posts Tagged ‘bakery’

A couple weeks ago, Mary Stuart and I checked out Sophie’s Uptown, a sweet café in Buckhead, on Pharr Road. This tucked away bakery/café now serves lunch, including gluten-free options. The bakery is named after the owner’s beloved dog, Sophie, who passed away a couple of years ago. If you’re a dog lover, Sophie’s is definitely the place for you. Dog cupcakes, cookies, and decorations can be found throughout the store.

There are plenty of tables inside, and lots of space, so this is a great spot to meet someone for a lunch date. The menu isn’t huge but there are definitely some good options. I went with the gluten-free quiche, which is made with a yummy GF crust, and accompanied with a side salad. It was the perfect lunch for a gorgeous fall afternoon. Of course I couldn’t resist trying their huge GF brownie. (I used good restraint and saved the other half for later.)

Last weekend, David and I drove to Nashville to meet our new niece, Anna. We have three nephews so it’s fun to add a niece to the mix!

I got to spend most of Friday, hanging out with my sister-in-law, Blair, and sweet little Anna. They live in East Nashville and of course Blair had scoped out her neighborhood for GF goodies for me.

We went to lunch at The Green Wagon, which can be described as an environmentally friendly general store. Lots of “green” cleaning products, alkaline water and other products. Their goal is to minimize businesses’ and consumers’ carbon footprint. The most exciting part about The Green Wagon though, is Aunt April’s Cafe, in the back of the store. Aunt April’s is totally, 100% gluten free and she makes lots of baked treats. You can also enjoy a sandwich or panini for lunch, made on April’s delicious, homemade bread. There aren’t a ton of sandwich options but I was a very satisfied customer.

Aunt April's Cafe: Entering a Gluten-Free Zone

Blair and I enjoyed delicious paninis at The Green Wagon. (They have seating inside so you don’t have to order to-go.) Mine was composed of turkey, cheddar, tomato, spinach and mustard. Yummy! It was so nice to not have to worry about contamination and know for sure that everything I enjoyed was safe. April’s bread was perfectly textured, with no funky after taste, and it’s clear April has been working on creating the perfect recipe for some time.

Paninis!

I also picked out a pumpkin chocolate chip muffin for dessert and a blueberry muffin that I patiently saved for breakfast the next day. The pumpkin muffin was so delicious and might have been the best flour blend I’ve ever tried. Perfectly pumpkin, with a taste of cinnamon and maybe nutmeg. And of course everything tastes better with chocolate. I only wish I’d bought more.

And a pumpkin muffin for dessert

You can also special order goodies from Aunt April. All of her items are dairy free and can be made soy free, without the chocolate chips. She offers cupcakes, brownies, cookies and other items as well.

I can’t wait to go back and sample more of her goodies! You can also find her treats at other Nashville locations, including The Wild Cow and Edgehill Café.

On our last day in New York, David and I yet again, woke up before the rest of the city, and headed out for a bit of culture at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. (We’re both former history teachers so we had to get a little history squeezed into this trip.) I have to eat within about 30 minutes of waking up so we stopped at Dean & Deluca for some much needed coffee and breakfast. Being the planner that I am, I had purchased a mini-coffee cake at Tu-Lu’s Bakery the previous day. I have no shame so I broke out my coffee cake at Dean & Deluca and it was oh so wonderfully perfect with my cup of coffee.

GF Coffee Cake + D & D Coffee = Perfect

I also bought a fancy yogurt to give me a little more nutrients and protein to get me ready for a day full of walking. I had never tried Siggi’s yogurt before but it said “Certified Gluten Free” on the container so I felt very safe. (I love it when companies get their products tested and labeled. Little things like that make travel so much easier.)

Siggi's Yogurt: Certified GF

After our morning meal, we started walking toward Central Park to enjoy another day of nearly perfect weather in NYC. We strolled through the park, watching more ambitious people running and biking. (There was a big race raising money for Japan so it was fun to watch everyone in action.) We meandered through the park, and ended our walk at the Met.

We had purchased tickets ahead of time so didn’t have to wait in any lines. We unintentionally ended up at the Alexander McQueen exhibit, “Savage Beauty” first, which proved to be a smart decision since it was already pretty crowded and the museum had only been open for about twenty minutes. This temporary exhibit (it ends July 31st) walks its audience through the short career of McQueen, who died last year. Even if you’re not a fashionista (I’m definitely not, nor is David), you should still check out this exhibit. It’s intense, provocative, and very educational. The unique and inventive displays give you a whole new perspective on fashion and a designer’s vision. It made me a believer that fashion is art. (Who knew a group of dresses with “rape” in the title could be a reflection of the history of England and Scotland’s relationship?)

We continued through the Met, checking out the Impressionists, photography, armor and other exhibits, ending our tour with a cold drink in the American Wing Café, which is bright with natural light and a perfect place to rest your feet after a toursity morning.

Following our trek to Central Park and the Met, we splurged on a cab back to the hotel, took quick naps, and headed to the Lower East Side, for a late lunch at Pala Pizza. I had heard rave reviews about Pala from the gluten-free community and it exceeded my expectations. All of their pizzas can be made gluten free and they are very careful about cross contamination. We had trouble deciding what we wanted to order but ultimately went with the fried calamari as a starter. Pala uses separate gluten-free fryers and corn meal for the breading of the calamari. It was delicious and so fun to get an item that I can rarely enjoy and would never make for myself at home. (We all need a little something fried every now and then.)

David and I shared the lamb sausage pizza with pesto for our lunch. Every bite of this pizza was delicious. The light,crispy crust, the pesto and the lamb went perfectly together. (Maybe I think that because lamb and pesto are two of my favorite foods!) I dominated that pizza. For the first time in our marriage, I ate more than David. He offered me the last two pieces and I didn’t even hesitate. Delicious!

After our meal, we walked across the Williamsburg Bridge to Brooklyn, in our Sunday best because we were going to a late afternoon wedding on a Brooklyn pier. Walking across the bridge was a very cool way to get to Brooklyn, but I have to admit, it freaked me out a little bit. There are bike and walking paths, so the bridge is completely safe, but trip across felt much longer on foot than I thought it was going to be. The Brooklyn wedding was beautiful, unique and a fun way to celebrate a couple. We felt honored to be included in the festivities.

View of the Williamsburg Bridge

As I can’t normally enjoy wedding reception cuisine (except for the wine), we ended up at Caracas Arepa Bar for a late night dinner. This Venezuelan restaurant makes arepas from scratch daily.

We ordered four arepas to go, including grilled chicken with caramelized onions and cheese, roasted pork shoulder with spicy mango sauce, and shredded beef, with black beans, plantains and cheese. It was a lot of flavor combinations but I enjoyed sampling the different varieties. My favorite was the grilled chicken arepa.

While we waited for our to-go order, I decided I wanted to go back to Tu-Lu’s Bakery one more time. (And of course, David nicely complied.) I partly wanted to return to the bakery so I could see for myself that Tu-Lu’s really stays open as late as it says it does (9:00 p.m. on Sunday nights and 10:30 on Friday and Saturday!). I bought another cupcake (chocolate this time) and a cookie to take back to Georgia with me.

David and I finished up our amazing New York weekend eating arepas and cupcakes in our hotel room, watching the NBA playoffs…perfect.

If you love the hamburger buns at YEAH! Burger than you’ll want to keep reading the following press release from Pure Knead…

We are *delighted* to announce that our retail shop will open on Saturday, February 26th! A few of the many products you will see include our well-known buns (both original and multigrain), hoagie rolls, rosemary bread braids, olive boules, baguettes and croutons! Of course, you can’t have a great bakery without great dessert! You haven’t had bread pudding until you’ve had our Pure Knead bread pudding, and our brown sugar chocolate chip cookies are simply heavenly! Ok, now that your mouth is watering (mine is), here are some details…

We will be open from 9am to 1pm, with both fresh and frozen options for you. The bakery address and phone number are at the bottom of this message.

We will have monthly specials to take advantage of our amazing local agriculture system, so sign up on our facebook page to get the inside scoop on those offerings!

You can certainly call ahead and place an order for pick up, or simply come on Saturdays and see what strikes your fancy!

Many of you have asked us for products that are free of allergens other than gluten. Just a quick reminder that all Pure Knead products are certified gluten-free, and are also free of dairy, soy, nuts and shellfish- we don’t use them in our facility. Most of our current products do contain egg and corn. In the bakery, you can look at the ingredient list for every product we sell; we are proud of what we put into our products, and think you should know what you are eating. For the Opening, we will not be offering specialized products, but I promise that we are working on egg-free and other options for you! If you have a question, please don’t ever be shy about asking!

The Grand Opening is special to me for so many reasons, and we are going to celebrate! You will be able to sample many of our products on the 26th- try before you buy! And the first 20 people through our doors will go home with a special goodie!

We are so excited to welcome you to the bakery; so much time and care has gone into this effort, and I can’t thank the Pure Knead staff enough for helping me make this a reality! Looking forward to seeing you on Saturday- and bring a friend or two!

So here’s where to find Pure Knead:

186 Rio Circle, Suite C – Decatur, GA 30030 – 404-377-5567

If you are familiar with Dekalb Farm’ers Market, we are just down the street. Rio Circle is just off of Laredo Drive, which runs directly into the Farmer’s market. Look for the signs for Southern Sweets bakery; we are located in the same building (Suite C in the back half of the building). Mapquest will find us, so use it if you aren’t from around the Decatur area!

Recently my kitchen has been stocked full with gluten-free breads from a local, Atlanta bakery, Old World Artisan Bread Company. Owner and founder, Thomas Sergio, began his career baking gluten-filled breads and bagels, but has realized there is a need for yummy, gluten-free breads in the Atlanta area. Sergio has done just that and developed a recipe that is flavorful, texturally bread-like, and more importantly, perfect for sandwiches, grilled cheese and even French toast. Prepare to wow your friends, as they won’t know this bread is gluten-free. (Nor will they be overcome by a weird after taste, either!)

I have been enjoying the gluten-free whole grains bread for lunch in a variety of ways. Grilled cheese is hard to resist on a lazy Saturday afternoon, but I must admit, my favorite combination is Old World’s bread toasted and topped with peanut butter and homemade jam. I never get tired of peanut butter, thank goodness! I know it’s not fancy, but it’s so good. And, it takes truly delicious bread for me to forego my rice cakes and use GF bread.

My Favorite Jam...

Old World’s cinnamon raisin muffins are particularly delicious when enjoyed with cream cheese and jam. A perfect afternoon snack or morning breakfast. Just heat the muffins a little in the oven, slice in half and let the cream cheese work its magic. I prefer this combination to a thick, gluten-free bagel anyways. (Gluten-free bagels involve way too much chewing for my liking.)

Cinnamon Raisin Muffins: Envision with Cream Cheese

I always keep soup, stews and chili in the freezer for a quick weeknight dinner, so last week, I enjoyed leftover beef chili (made by David), Brussels sprouts, and an Old World dairy-free, gluten-free dinner roll. These rolls taste delicious with honey or butter and made the dinner more filling. I just love corn bread or a roll with soup. (It makes me feel more normal.)

Perfect Weeknight Dinner

Final Verdict: Old World Artisan’s gluten-free offerings are not to be missed and even gluten eaters will enjoy these products. Buy a variety and store extras in the freezer. Stay tuned for more info on their gluten-free hamburger buns.

Check out Old World’s gluten-free offerings on their website. You can find Sergio’s gluten-free products at Return to Eden (Atlanta) and Atlantis Natural Foods (Dunwoody).

Local bakery, Sally’s Bakery just added Cinnamon Rolls (with icing!) to their menu. These rolls come six to a pan, for $9.99. Perfect for a Sunday brunch or a lazy morning breakfast. Sally’s cinnamon rolls are gluten, dairy, soy and egg free. Amazing!

Sally’s has also decided to make their dinner rolls and pecan pie part of their year-round menu, not just for the holidays. Head to Sally’s and stock up on your gluten-free goodies. Remember, you can always put items in the freezer to enjoy at a later date.

A local, Atlanta bakery, Cecilia’s Bake Shop offers gluten-free and vegan desserts to their customers. Their treats are also dairy-free and egg-free too. Last night I tried their chocolate chip cookie dough and these cookies were amazing. So chocolatey, perfectly gooey, and no weird textures or after tastes. David devoured two! I didn’t tell him until afterward that they were dairy and egg free, in addition to being GF. He had no idea.

Also, when I ate that remaining, lonely, cookie this morning with my coffee, it still tasted delicious! It didn’t harden overnight and again, no weird aftertaste. These might be some of the best GF chocolate chip cookies I’ve tried, which is crazy, since they’re free of so many other things. Good work, Cecilia’s!

I love supporting local businesses, so if you’re in the Atlanta area, you should definitely check out Cecilia’s. You can find their cookie dough at Whole Foods and Sevanandah, or you can order directly from them. If you call ahead, you can stop by their store too. Cecilia’s sells cookies, cakes and ‘raw pies.’ I’m itching to try their gluten-free carrot cake. Yum! Check out all of Cecilia’s offerings by clicking here.

A pack of cookie dough would be a great last minute holiday gift for a gluten-free friend! Always a treat for us gluten-free folks to easily bake something that requires no prep time: just preheat the oven, put dough on cookie sheet, and bake. Tastes like homemade, because it is!

Last Friday, I received a package from Katz Gluten Free Bake Shoppe. I felt like it was Christmas as I dove into the package full of goodies! This certified gluten-free bakery offers a huge variety of different treats to order. Not only are Katz’s items gluten-free, but also dairy and nut free. Many folks who stay away from gluten, also try to avoid dairy, so Katz is the perfect option. (I try to limit my dairy, but it’s not completely banned for me…I love ice cream and cheese too much.)

Recently Katz came out with two new products, which I got to sample: Rugelach and Chocolate Cupcakes. For those of you that don’t know, rugelach is a traditional Jewish dessert, involving a crescent roll with some type of filling. Katz sent me the vanilla and cinnamon varieties, but they also sell a chocolate flavor. These sweet treats are perfect with my afternoon cup of tea. I’m particularly a big fan of the cinnamon and I really enjoy the texture. Our friends, Scott and Meredith, (who are gluten eaters) also enjoyed trying them! The Rugelachs are a great item to bring to a party, if you don’t have time to make your own. It’s a little something different than the typical holiday cookies.

The chocolate cupcakes (with sprinkles!) were also a nice Saturday afternoon treat, but I could taste the ‘dairy-free’ aspect of them more than in the rugelach. After letting mine thaw, I heated it in the microwave for a few seconds, which was a nice touch. Definitely chocolatey and the cake part was nice, but I usually go for a creamier frosting. (Since Katz ships their items, this isn’t necessarily an option for them.) My favorite GF cupcakes are from Buzz Bakery and Cake Love in Virginia, but if I can’t get them fresh from the bakery, Katz is a nice option to have.

I also have a loaf of their marble cake in my freezer now that I’m going to wait and enjoy in 2011, when I return from all of my travels! I love looking forward to treats!

I definitely suggest checking out Katz’s website to see for yourself just how much they have to offer. And, for those of you that want to stock up, they offer free shipping for orders over $30! (Remember, you can freeze GF baked goods easily so you don’t have to worry about items spoiling.) Their cinnamon strip looks absolutely ridiculous.

So not only did I get to sample Katz’s items, but I want YOU to try them too. I’m hosting a KatzGiveaway on Gluten Freedom for a free sample pack of Katz items. If you comment on this post, or become a fan of Gluten Freedom on Facebook, you will be entered in the raffle. I will do the drawing for the Katz gift pack at noon on December 31st. (I’ll be in Japan between now and then!)

And, there’s an even bigger giveaway! Drum roll, please…

Click here to enter Katz’s January 3rd raffle, for your chance to win a goodie box, with one of everything Katz makes. That’s a lot of stuff. Amazing, right?

In the midst of all of the holiday parties, full of glutenous items, I’m thankful to have my supply of Katz goodies to keep my sweet tooth satisfied.

Normally, when I travel, my anxiety levels rise, as I’m far away from the restaurants I love and the safety of my own kitchen. While we were out west, however, I didn’t find myself worrying about food. Everywhere we went in Wyoming and Montana, people knew about gluten and were willing to accommodate me if they didn’t already have their gluten-free items listed on the menu. We also didn’t feel limited to only eating at really nice restaurants, as there were plenty of more casual restaurants that had a wide range of options for me. Particularly in Jackson Hole, I don’t even feel like we began to tap into the dining world, but we did get a great sampling of the yummy (and gluten-free) flavors Jackson Hole has to offer.

On our first afternoon in Jackson, we took a stroll around the downtown. I spotted the Lotus Cafe immediately and was hopeful that there would be options for me at this quirky spot. Fortunately, my hunch was right. Serving everything from Pad Thai to burgers to Indian food, Lotus’ huge menu indicates every item that can be made gluten-free. Basically everything on their menu can be ordered gluten-free, and I really mean everything. (Their website indicates 99% of the menu can be made GF.)

Many GF treats greeted me in the glass case!

After enjoying drinks at Spring Creek with my friend Beanie, (and attempting to adjust to the altitude) we returned to Lotus for our first dinner in Jackson. I was immediately overwhelmed by the plethora of options…what a rare treat!

One of my favorite menu items was the gluten-free samosas with spiced peas and potatoes. This dish, which is basically a large breaded dumpling, is always a no-no for me. At Lotus, however, they use a combination of brown and white rice flour in their samosa recipe. Delicious! The sauce accompanying the dish is amazing too.

GF Veggie Samasos

For our entrees, David and I decided to share, since I could actually know for sure that his meal was gluten-free too. He ordered the chicken tikka masala (one of our family favorites) and I went with the ‘Fiesta Bowl’ with bison. The fiesta bowl consisted of a mix of bison, cheese, lettuce, corn chips, lentils and other yummy goodness. I always like to combine everything on my plate so this dish was perfect for me. The tikka masala also received positive reviews from both of us and I loved getting to reach across the table and grab a bite off David’s plate and not worry about contamination, gluten, etc. It’s the simple pleasures in life, right?

Fiesta Bowl with Bison

Chicken Tikka Masala

What a meal! Oh, and the best part is that Lotus also serves breakfast and lunch. All of their sandwiches can be prepared on their homemade gluten-free bread. The whole time I ate my dinner I was planning when we could return to try their other food! Unfortunately we never got back to Lotus for lunch but we did go for coffee and breakfast a couple of times.

GF & Vegan Zuchinni Muffin (even David loved it!)

If you’re in Jackson, Lotus is the perfect place to go just for a cup of coffee. We brought our books and would make a morning of it until we got motivated to start moving and hiking. (More about the hiking and reading later.) All of Lotus’ baked goods (cookies, muffins, etc.) are vegan, making them dairy free and egg free. Many of their items are also gluten-free. Fortunately, I didn’t realize the muffins were vegan until after ordering. (Usually I shy away from foods that are missing milk, eggs, and butter!) These muffins were delicious!

Raspberry Cashew Muffin

I have a much more positive attitude towards vegan items now that I’ve sampled these amazing treats. During our time in Jackson, I enjoyed Lotus’ raspberry cashew muffin and zucchini muffin. So good. One morning I also ordered the ‘Maya,’ steamed quinoa with apples, cinnamon candied walnuts and organic milk. Sweet quinoa is quite possibly my favorite culinary discovery while out west.

Maya: Hearty Quinoa with a sweet crunch

Sadly, I did not get to try nearly as many things as I would have liked at Lotus, as we were only in Jackson three short days. Other dishes that stood out to me on the menu included:

The Deluxe breakfast sandwich (David ordered this but got it with glutenous bread…he’d done enough sharing at that point.)

I guess I’ll just have to go back to Jackson to sample the rest. When I started this post, I thought I would write about all of the restaurants where we ate in Jackson, but clearly I’ve got a lot to say. The others will just have to wait. Lotus definitely deserves an entire post to itself. Thank you, Lotus Café. I hope to see you again soon.

PS: Lotus also has gluten-free tamari/soy sauce on every table. Even labeled! Who doesn’t want a little soy sauce on their raspberry cashew muffin?

Do you ever worry that you’ll be told something’s gluten-free when it’s really not? For many of us celiacs, this concern is definitely a source of anxiety. Unfortunately, sometimes this mistake happens through contamination, but usually people are not being intentionally deceptive.

A new case recently arose, however, that involves a man that appeared to be intentionally misleading customers about a supposedly ‘gluten-free’ product. Check out this article, sent to me by a former student, about the recent arrest of Paul Seelig of the Raleigh/Durham area. Seelig owns a bread company and faces charges for deceiving his customers. The bread that he advertised as gluten-free actually had high levels of gluten. It doesn’t look like this is just a case of a little bit of contamination. Sorry Mister, that’s not ok.